Walt Disney and Mary Blair talking about creating the facade for It’s a Small World.

Walt Disney and Mary Blair presenting the concept sketches for the attraction, It’s a Small World.

Mary Blair with some villagers in Chile.

Mary Blair and Walt Disney inside the small world attraction.

Mary Blair at work on the design of the attraction “It’s a Small World”.

“The Colors of Mary Blair” is a major new exhibit of Mary Blair’s artwork that has opened at the Museum of Contemporary Art in Tokyo, Japan. Over five hundred pieces of original artwork are on display, including her animation work, book illustrations, package designs, watercolors, and personal artwork. The show’s website is in Japanese, but there is an English section with basic address and admission details. These photos on Flickr (HERE and HERE) give a sense of the exhibit’s scale, and this image shows that the exhibition is accompanied by merchandise and a catalog. The show runs through October 4.

(via)

Mary Blair and Walt Disney with the “Mary Blair” doll in front of a portion of the Small World attraction model.

Co-Imagineer Rolly Crump recalls that “Mary got childlike when she designed and much of that went directly into the ride. We did a Mary Blair figure for It’s a Small World and she’s still in there. Mary always wore wild outfits, with a poncho and she had short blonde hair. So, we decided to include a Mary Blair doll for the ride, with a poncho. She’s standing midway up in the Eiffel Tower.”